Corporate Training Magazine

Supporting Canada's Future
Vol 2 Issue 6 - Nov 2006

By Alan Cofferton

Children are our future. To create a better world for our future generations, we need to give them the best start in life. As one of Canada's leading media companies, CHUM Limited has taken this message to heart. Through meaningful and beneficial partnerships with charitable and not-for-profit organizations involved in issues relevant to their unique audiences, the company has made a significant social contribution nationwide.

Kids Help Phone
MuchMusic is the founding media sponsor of Kids Help Phone, which provides free, confidential and anonymous phone and online counseling 24 hours a day, seven days a week for children and youth across Canada. Professional counselors answer approximately 1,000 calls every day from youth wanting to discuss issues including abuse, relationships, addictions and suicide. MuchMusic has provided hundreds of thousands of dollars of support, including the production and broadcast of original PSAs such as "The Real You", which highlighted issues facing youth today to build awareness of Kids Help Phone as a resource for all Canadian youth. Staff also volunteer time and donate one-of-a-kind experiences in support of their fundraising efforts.

Fame for Food
Citytv Calgary's annual Fame for Food program--also adopted by Citytv Edmonton and Citytv Winnipeg--raised over $242,000 in December 2004 and $263,000 in December 2005. The program offers members of the public, as well as companies, groups and not-for-profit organizations, the opportunity to record a greeting to air on Citytv in exchange for food or cash contributions to the Calgary Interfaith Food Bank.

Radiothon
Halifax radio stations C100 and CJCH's Radiothon for the Children's Hospital is a three-day live broadcast dedicated to raising money for medical equipment and research for the facility. The fourth annual radiothon was broadcast remotely from two different locations: the hospital's Parker Reception Room, and the Halifax Shopping Centre. The event raised $428,549, bringing our total raised for the Children's Hospital over four years to $1,329,000.

Toys for Tots
Citytv Edmonton partnered with the Salvation Army to sink the Santa Maria, a huge boat in the centre of West Edmonton Mall, with toys for Edmonton's less fortunate children. Last year, Toys for Tots collected 20,000 toys. This year's goal is 25,000 toys. As the official television sponsor, Citytv encouraged Edmontonians to donate a new, unwrapped toy for children ages one to 12. Toys were dropped off at the Santa Maria or at the Citytv studios to make it a wonderful holiday for everyone.

Festival of Trees
CFUN 1410 and 103.5 QM/FM have been media sponsors of the Festival of Trees for 14 years, helping The British Columbia Children's Hospital raise money for much needed equipment at BC's primary children's care centre. From late November through New Year's at the Four Seasons Hotel, corporate sponsors 'buy' and decorate a tree. The public is invited to visit the display, vote for their favourite tree and make a donation to the hospital. To support the event, CFUN and 103.5 QM/FM ran live liners and commercials to drive traffic to the Festival. The event has grown from 14 trees in the first year to 38 last year. 2005 was the most successful year yet, with money from 'tree sales' and on-site donations reaching almost $202,000.

War Child Canada
War Child Canada assists children affected by war and encourages youth to take an active role in creating a more just future. MuchMusic is the official media sponsor of Keep the Beat, War Child's music fundraiser. The non-stop music event creates awareness about war-affected children and engages students to make a global impact by raising funds that support various international projects.

Kids Cancer Campout
Citytv Calgary's annual Kids Cancer Campout was the biggest and best ever. In June 2005, 23 kids with cancer, ages four to 18, from the Alberta Children's Hospital, had the unique opportunity to stay overnight and camp at Citytv's studios. The kids enjoyed interactive camp-style activities, and taped a TV show that highlighted some of their favourite things.

School Supply Donations
While preparing a story on back-to-school, CKX in Brandon learned that a large number of financially disadvantaged students begin their school year without basic supplies. CKX News and CKX Noon Hour Show approached the Brandon School Division to start a school supply drive. For three weeks in August, viewers were encouraged to drop off new school supplies in the 'yellow school bus' in the CKX lobby. By the end of the drive, hundreds of dollars worth of school supplies were donated to the Brandon School Division for distribution to disadvantaged students.

Free The Children
Canadian Learning Television (CLT) has developed a strong relationship with Free The Children, a Canadian-based international advocacy and support organization for youth. CLT has produced and broadcast the series Me to We about the organization and its founders Craig and Marc Kielburger, and a series of short programs, Seven Steps to Action, following the outline of their best-selling book, Take Action. CLT is also in post-production on a special feature, Free The Children: The Royal Visit, about the impact the organization is having on young people in Canada and internationally.

The Canadian Music Therapy Trust Fund (CMTTF)
MuchMusic provides hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash and in-kind donations to the CMTTF, which supports music therapy--a method of treatment that uses music to help people cope more effectively with difficulties in their lives. CMTTF has distributed funds to hundreds of projects, including hospices, centres for the aged, schools for children with disabilities, and programs for street kids.

Hats and Mitts for Kids
This year CJCH in Halifax conducted the first Hats and Mitts For Kids campaign. Listeners were encouraged to drop off new or gently used hats and mitts for kids in need. The results of the three-week campaign were overwhelmingly positive, collecting over 2,100 hats, mitts, scarves and socks.

CHUMCity Christmas Wish
Every year, through the joint efforts of 104.5 CHUM FM, 1050 CHUM and Citytv, the CHUMCity Christmas Wish helps to give those in need a happier holiday season. In conjunction with the City of Toronto's Community and Neighbourhood Social Services, the 39th annual Wish assisted well over 300,000 individuals of many faiths and cultures, and more than 400 agencies with toys and cash, increasing the number of people supported by 15 percent. The CHUMCity Christmas Wish has become one of the largest distributors of toys to those in need in the GTA, as well as providing financial assistance in the form of gift and food certificates to the front-line workers of Toronto Social Service, to aid those requiring emergency help during the holidays.

Online Learning Symposium
For the seventh year in a row, ACCESS was a media sponsor for the Online Learning Symposium, a gathering of educators and other educational stakeholders who meet, discuss and learn about the delivery of education on new technology platforms. The goal of the symposium and its organizer, the Alberta Online Consortium, is to provide the best learning tools and the best access to level the learning field for all students in Alberta, especially those hampered by distance or disadvantage.

CHUM is also committed to encouraging diversity in Canadian broadcasting by working with partner organizations to provide scholarships through its Music and Youth Services division. In partnership with the Aboriginal Youth Network (AYN), the MuchMusic Aboriginal Youth Scholarship awards $5000 to an Aboriginal student under the age of 29 who best demonstrates skill, talent, excellence and enthusiasm in pursuing a career in broadcasting. Similarly, the AccessAbility Scholarship is awarded in partnership with the National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS) to the individual with a disability who best demonstrates skill, talent, excellence and enthusiasm in pursuing a career in broadcasting.

With the support of CHUM and its partners, along with countless organizations large and small across Canada, the future is looking bright for generations to come.